With Saint Leo University surrounded by cows, horses, farms, and pastures, the closest shopping mall is 13 miles away with a few shops.
The major shopping malls are within Tampa Bay or close to it. Having a car or a friend with a car will be a necessity. However, Saint Leo does offer van rides every now and then to one of the shopping malls around the campus. Typically, the van rides will go to the Grove or the Shops at Wiregrass approximately 20 minutes south on I-75.
The Grove:
The first mall one would come across while heading south down I-75 is the Grove. This mall is an outdoor shopping plaza. The Cobb Theatre, which Saint Leo hosts many van rides to, is housed at the Grove. Other shops include Dick’s Sporting Goods, Ulta, Best Buy, Pet Smart, and Michael’s. The Grove is located on 6105 Wesley Grove Blvd, Wesley Chapel, FL. Its website is groveshopping.com.
The Shops at Wiregrass:
Heading just slightly further down I-75 and making a left at the overpass will take one to Wiregrass, a large outdoor shopping mall boasting several restaurants, clothing stores, shoe stores, and boutiques. Some restaurants are Moe’s, Yamato Japanese Steak House and Grill, 900˚ Woodfired Pizza to name a few. The shopping mall also has a Macy’s, Dillard’s, JCPenny, Barnes & Noble, and Charlotte Russe. Also, every first Saturday of the month, the mall holds Fresh Market from 10 am until 2 pm in which local farmers and producers sell fruits and vegetables, meat, cheeses, clothes, and more. Wiregrass is located on 28211 Paseo Dr Ste 100, Wesley Chapel, FL and its website is theshopsatwiregrass.com.
Tampa Premium Outlets:
In the same area of The Shops at Wiregrass are the Tampa Premium Outlets along SR 56. Although this is another outdoor shopping mall, it does not have the same shops as Wiregrass. Instead, the Premium Outlets, located on 2300 Grand Cypress Dr, Lutz, FL, has shops such as Coach, Calvin Klein, Disney Outlet, Godiva, Haagen-Dazs, and more. There is a central cafeteria located in the middle of the shopping center, which makes up for the distinct lack of restaurants. The website houses more information about the Premium Outlets at premiumoutlets.com.
University Mall:
Located at 2200 E Fowler Ave, Tampa, FL, the University Mall is an indoor shopping center sporting shops such as Cinderella Bridal, Aeropostale Factory, Papaya, and many, many more. University Mall has more shops than the Tampa Premium Outlets and the Shops at Wiregrass combined. The mall has been on the decline in the past few years; however, the mall brings in a large number of customers day-to-day regardless. To see which shops it has visit universitymalltampa.com.
International Plaza and Bay Street:
The International mall is perhaps the most widely known mall as it is located right next to the international airport, at 2223 N West Shore Blvd, Tampa, FL. The mall has both an indoor and outdoor section, each area focusing on different things. The outdoor area has much of the restaurants and dining while the indoor area has the regular shops for clothes, shoes, and etc. To check out more about the mall simply look at its website shopinternationalplaza.com. The only downside to this mall is that some of the stores are a bit pricey and it is approximately an hour’s drive away.
Other malls that are worth checking out are the Westshore Plaza, which is an entirely indoor mall like the University mall, and Westfield Citrus Park, which has an attached movie theatre and more.
